Integral cushion backing for tufted rugs and process for making same



Nov. 15, 1966 D. H. MCELHINNEY 3,285,796

INTEGRAL CUSHION BACKING FOR TUFTED RUGS AND PROCESS FOR MAKING SAME Filed oct. 28, 196s INVENTOR.

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United States Patent() 3,285,796 INTEGRAL CUSHION BACKING FOR rI 'UFTED RUGS AND PROCESS FOR MAKING SAME Douglas H. McElhinney, Dalton, Ga., assignor to Cabin Crafts, Inc., Dalton, Ga., a corporation of Georgia Filed Oct. 28, 1963, Ser. No. 319,113 8 Claims. (Cl. 161-66) This invention relates to carpets, rugs, and other articles formed by needling yarn through a backing or ground sheet in which the stitches forming the pile are anchored by a coating of adhesive material applied to the stitches on the back of the sheet.

It has been common practice to apply the adhesive to the back of the ground sheet after the tufting of the whole article is complete and, before the coating becomes dry, to apply a layer of open mesh sheet material woven of jute, twisted paper, heavy cotton or other textile materials. This layer adheres to the carpet and becomes i a part thereof. The adhesive layer as it dries and harde-ns and the mesh backing provides a hard unyielding surface next to the floor.

Whether the mesh backing is used or not, most carpet manufacturers advise using a pad or cushion lunder the carpet to prolong its life as well as to give a softer feel underfoot.

It is an object of this invention to improve the cushion effect and comfort underfoot of tufted carpets and other tufted floor coverings by improvements in processing the tufted product and resulting improvements in its final Construction.

Another object of the invention is to increase the locking and more securely to anchor the individual tufts or stitches to the backing sheet and to make a more completely integrated carpet construction. i

Another object of the invention is to improve the cushion effect and under-foot comfort of finished carpets, rugs and other tufted oor coverings While at the same time more securely anchoring the individual tufts or stitches to the backing sheet. y

Other objects and advantages of the invention will appear as the invention is described in connection with the accompanying drawing.

In the drawing, FIGURES 1, 2 and 3 are perspective views,partly in cross section, of a piece of carpet made according to the invention and showing it in successive stages of the method of manufacture.

Referring to the drawing, a backing or ground sheet 10 may conventionally be of Woven material such as canvas, burlap, jute or any of the already known or suitable sheets used or usable as a foundation in forming a carpet, rug or other floor covering by the usual and well-known tufting process.

In carrying out tufting machine operations and tufting procedures now in common usage, a bank of needles reciprocates each carrying a yarn end 12, 14, 16 through the backing sheet 10 as the needles penetrate the sheet. Transverse rows of yarn loops or stitches 18 are thus made, and lines of stitches 'running long-itudinally are formed by the needles and yarn as the sheet is moved longitudinally under the needle bank. The stitches formed by any one yarn end may be either cut or uncut loops on the side of the carpet which is to be up when the carpet is laid, while the yarn on the other or bottom side is drawn tightly against the backing sheet between one loop or tuft and the next.

In 'some products rela-tive movement transversely is provided between the needles and the backing sheet while the needles are above the sheet as by shifting the needle bank relative to the sheet in timed relation to the other machine and tufting operations as in Patent 3,026,830, or shifting the sheet relative to the needle bank, a pre- 3,285,796 Patented Nov. 15, 1966 ICC determined distance in each case according to a pattern. A larger amount of yarn appears on the back or bottom face of the carpet when there is yarn-shifting than when the stitching proceeds with one yarn in a straight line throughout. In some patterns a very considerable amount of theyarn is on the back of the carpet while in straight tufting a much smaller amount is on back and it usually is more tightly drawn against the backing sheet. The invention is useful nevertheless in both cases.

In order to provide rmer or more secure anchoring of the loops or stitches in the backing sheet and at the same time to provide a fluffy or napped surface 20 which will provide a cushiony, yielding or resilient surface on the back or floor-side of the carpet, the yarn on the back of the carpet is brushed to bring up a nap.

This is done after the tufting process and procedures are completed. Any conventional napping machinery may vbe used which will bring up as thick a nap as possible without disturbing the yarn on the pile or upper side of the carpet. Thus, the length of time that the napping action is continued and the vigor of such action will be governed by the thickness of the nap desired. The napping creates a layer of matted intertwined fibres of the yarn from the stitches on the floor side of the backing sheet, but a residue of the stitches remains between the nap and the backing sheet.

In general, suitable napping machinery consists of one or more brushing rolls with wire brushes over the surface thereof adjacent to which the material to be napped is passed, over a flat surface or over a c-urved roll or surface. The wires of the brushes may or may not be bent.

Upon completion of the napping operation, the carpet is taken to conventional apparatus for applying an adhesive which will hold the napped back of the carpet to the backing sheet.

The adhesive may be a commercial latex compound containing approximately 70% solids, of which 20% to 50% may be natural or synthetic rubber. The other solids are made up of intert ller and certain curing agents, laccelerators and -aging materials. Such Ycompounds may vary according to the preferences of one carpet manufacturer or another but are readily available from supply houses either as mixtures or the ingredients for mixing according to supplied formulae. Hence, they need not be more specifically described.

This straight latex composition may be applied by spraying, brushing or passage over a conventional licker roll to penetrate the nap. For better penetration the applied composition may be subjected to an air blast or blower. The composition as thus applied coats the in-` dividual fibers of the nap to provide a hard flexible nish thereon when dried and cured. This also causes the fibres to adhere to one another. Nevertheless the air cells or interstices in the nap are not filled by the composition but remain open so that the resilience of the nap is retained but in a stiffened, less fluffy character due to the coating.

The penetration of the composition into the napped layer need not reach the backing sheet 10. It may only penetrate the napping and not the stitches lying against the surface of the backing sheet. In such -case a layer 21 comprised of the residue of the yarn stitches lies adjacent the backing sheet and between it and the coated napped layer 22. This has a cushioning effect but of a different, softer effect than the coated nap layer 22.

Thus, there is provided a cushion back to the backing sheet Which is tough and strong to withstand the weight and tread of peoples feet but which has the resilience to act as a cushion backing under the pile. Moreover, the use of the latex adhesive with the napped yarn imparts a toughness and durability to the cushion in addition to more firmly anchoring the yarn to the backing sheet.

J a Although the foregoing provides a satisfactory cushion backing, it is preferable, however, to use a foamed latex composition rather than the straight compound, as it gives a somewhat softer and more resilient cushion backing. The foamed latex composition generally has less filler and may be foamed before being applied to the carpet by mechanical agitation with a gel as an additive to hold the composition in foamy condition. Alternatively, the composition may be foamed by the use of chemicals known as blowing agents which, when heated in the drying process, will foam and expand due to chemical reaction within the composition. A gel is generally used together with the blowing agents to hold the foam during the drying period. The foamed latex compositions, both the mechanically agitated type and the chemical type, are available on the market and need not be described in further detail or proportion, as specific ingredients and proportions may vary according to the preference of the manufacturer or according to the supplier from whom purchased.

Thus, the manufacture of the improved product or carpet construction involves a tufting step to form the basic carpet structure, a napping step to raise a nap on the back of the carpet and then application of the adhesive and binding composition to the napped back. After the adhesive binder is applied, it is dried and cured by passage through heating and drying chambers to dry, harden and set the composition. u

Instead of a latex base composition, other compositions, such as sizing starches or synthetic materials or resins other than that known as synthetic latex but which have similar characteristics and can form a flexible or resilient coating when dried and cured, may be used.

Many modifications within the scope of the invention will occur to those skilled in the art. Therefore, the invention is not limited to the specific embodiment described.

What is claimed is:

1. A tufted pile lioor covering, comprising a foundation sheet, a plurality of yarn ends inserted at spaced points through said sheet transversely and successively forming a succession of transverse rows of tufts on one side of said sheet, the yarns in the successive rows being continuous over the surface of the other side of said sheet connecting the tufts in successive rows, said connecting yarn being napped and forming a continuous napped layer over said opposite surface of the sheet, and a coating of an adhesive and binding material on said napped layer penetrating said layer, the interstices of said napped layer being open, said napped layer and coating providing a -cushion integral with said floor covermg.

2. A tufted pile floor covering, comprising a foundation sheet, a plurality of tuft-producing stitches of yarn passing through said sheet forming a pile surface on one side thereof and, on the other side, connections between successive stitches, said connections being napped forming a continuous napped layer, and a coating of an adhesive and binding material impregnating said layer binding together the bres of the napped layer, the interstices of said napped layer being open, said napped layer and coating providing a cushion integral with the oor coverlng.

3. A tufted pile floor covering as claimed in claim 2 in which said coating penetrates the napped layer only part way, leaving an uncoated portion of yarn between the foundation sheet and the coated portion of the napped layer which provides a different degree of cushioning than the coated portion.

4. A tufted pile floor covering as claimed in claim 3 wherein the coating contains a latex composition.

5. A tufted pile floor covering as claimed in claim 2 wherein the coating contains a latex composition.

6. In the method of producing a cushion-backing on a tufted floor covering of the type comprising a foundation sheet having yarn stitches on one side with yarn projecting through the sheet to form pile on the other side, the steps comprising napping the yarn on said one side, applying an adhesive and binding composition to `the nap to coat the bres of the nap and penetrate the nap without filling the interstices of the nap, and drying and curing the coating.

7. In the method of producing a cushion-backing on a tufted floor covering of the type comprising a foundation sheet having yarn stitches on one side with yarn projecting through the sheet to form pile on the other side, the steps comprising napping the yarn on said one side applying an adhesive and binding composition to the napped side to coat the nap to a depth less than the full distance to the foundation sheet and without lling the interstices of the nap, leaving uncoated a layer of the yarn on said napped side adjacent said sheet, and drying and curing the coating.

8. The method as claimed in claim 6, wherein the coating contains a latex composition.

References Cited by the Examiner UNITED STATES PATENTS 2,913,803 11/1959v Dodds 161-65 3,034,194 5/ 1962 Priester et al. 161--64 ALEXANDER WYMAN, Primary Examiner. R. H. CRISS, Assistant Examiner. 

1. A TUFTED PILE FLOOR COVERING, COMPRISING A FOUNDATION SHEET, A PLURALITY OF YARN ENDS INSERTED AT SPACED POINTS THROUGH SAID SHEET TRANSVERSELY AND SUCCESSIVELY FORMING A SUCCESSION OF TRANSVERSE ROWS OF TUFTS ON ONE SIDE OF SAID SHEET, THE YARNS IN THE SUCCESSIVE ROWS BEING CONTINUOUS OVER THE SURFACE OF THE OTHER SIDE OF SAID SHEET CONNECTING THE TUFTS IN SUCCESSIVE ROWS, SAID CONNECTING YARN BEING NAPPED AND FORMING A CONTINUOUS NAPPED LAYER OVER SAID OPPOSITE SURFACE OF THE SHEET, AND A COATING OF AN ADHESIVE AND BINDING MATERIAL ON SAID NAPPED LAYER PENETRATING SAID LAYER, THE INTERSTICES OF SAID NAPPED LAYER BEING OPEN, SAID NAPPED LAYER AND COATING PROVIDING A CUSHION INTEGRAL WITH SAID FLOOR COVERING. 